Capturing the Lombardi Trophy is the pinnacle of success in the NFL. Nothing is bigger or better than the Super Bowl. It brings not only a massive piece of hardware but also substantial off-the-field rewards.
We’re talking about legacy. We’re talking about the history books. We’re talking about … money. And a lot of it.
For players, a $164,000 bonus check will hit their accounts after winning. But for NFL owners, the financial rewards of capturing the most coveted title in American sports are more substantial.
Let’s break it down.
The Financial Rewards of Winning the Super Bowl
While owners don’t receive that $164,000 bonus, that’s not moving the needle for some of the wealthiest men in America. Instead, the much more significant financial benefit for owners comes from the increase in their franchise’s valuation.
For example, according to Sports Business Journal, the New England Patriots were worth $464 million in 2000. In 2024, after six Super Bowl wins, the team is worth approximately $7.4 billion. That’s nearly a 1,500% increase.
Success is lasting, too. Sure, fans can (and will) get upset year in and year out, but it doesn’t matter. At least not financially.
The Dallas Cowboys haven’t won a Super Bowl since 1996, but “America’s Team” became the first NFL franchise to be worth more than $10 billion in 2024.
In short, winning the Super Bowl sets up massive revenue streams that provide long-term gains.
The Real Payoff for NFL Owners: Franchise Value Increase
Merchandise Sales: Super Bowl Champion Gear
The NFL’s merchandise money comes from prenegotiated deals with their licensing partners (like New Era for headwear and Nike for jerseys). Items purchased in-stadium obviously result in additional revenue for the team, but otherwise the league has already agreed to merchandise deals.
The league’s revenue share program led to each team receiving roughly $400 million in 2023 from media, sponsorships and merchandising.
Official details of Nike’s deal with the NFL aren’t known (other than the deal will expire in 2028), but insiders have speculated that Nike’s NBA deal cost the company $1 billion.
Ticket and Premium Seating Revenue
The bigger the brand, the greater the demand. So when a team wins the Super Bowl, it is practically guaranteed that more people will be interested the following season.
That means more people pouring into the stadium to watch the team.
In turn, that results in ticket prices increasing alongside sales. Sure, plenty of people complain that NFL games should be affordable for a family (and I don’t disagree with that), but owners are looking at supply and demand. If demand goes up, that’s a wonderful thing for a business.
Not to mention that the league as a whole is more popular than ever before. According to StubHub, NFL ticket sales to start the season were up 38% from a season ago.
The Role of Revenue Sharing in the NFL
The NFL’s revenue sharing is broken into two categories: local and national.
National revenue is shared across every team in the league and it consists of TV deals, merchandising, licensing deals, sponsorships, ticket sales (34% of gross) and NFL Network, NFL.com and NFL Sunday Ticket.
Local revenue goes to the local team and is made up of sponsorships with the specific team, concessions, parking and ticket sales (66% of gross).
The NFL uses a revenue sharing process to help create competitive balance across the league. This is undoubtedly a necessary step to take. However, plenty of critics (or perhaps, skeptics) have criticized this over the years. Some teams notoriously let their stadiums deteriorate, while others wallowed in mediocrity with seemingly no effort to improve the roster.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as How Much Money Do NFL Owners Make for Winning the Super Bowl?.